THINGS CHANGE WHEN PEOPLE CHANGE

I was surprised with news this week about the big bust. A dirty
baker's dozen of allegedly "organized" criminals.

Folks in my neighbourhood know that the street-level dealers we see
daily aren't the end of the story. No matter how many times they get
busted, we always hope the cops will nab the middle-or upper-level suppliers.

The courts may or may not find these guys guilty of the specific
charges resulting from the police investigation. We certainly
wouldn't be surprised to find them guilty -- especially in view of
their history in the community.

I had several thoughts when I first heard the news. One of the first
was the thought of prominent defence attorneys salivating over a
high-profile, high-paying case.

It's sure to be a large and lengthy trial. There's potential for big
bucks for some lawyers.

Who says crime doesn't pay?! It just pays different people in different ways!

Part of me wonders how many of those defence attorneys would actually
press for the freedom of someone they personally believe to be
guilty. Would they diddle the law while justice lies prostrate in the street?

They can hide all they want behind "due process." But one day they'll
answer for abusing the law to acquit the guilty.

Until that day, however, they'll plead, "You may think it's a dirty
job. But someone has to do it. Might as well be a nice guy like me."

And who pays for the high-profile lawyers? Will it be legal aid --
funded by taxpayers? Or will they be able to utilize some of the
alleged proceeds of crime to deny that they're using proceeds of crime?

But in the end, it's not just about jail time. And it isn't not just
about who pays for the courts and defence costs.

The bottom line for us is, "Will anything change?"

We have seen the courts set the guilty free. We have seen high-priced
lawyers wrangle freedom for those who could afford to pay. We have
seen people run criminal enterprises from jail. We have seen people
leave jail twice as determined to profit from crime.

So, what do I wish for the suburban kingpins of organized crime?

The same thing I wish for their pawns in our neighbourhood.

Change!

Over the years, I've spoken personally with some dealers. I'm pretty
direct about what we want.

A flash of realization

"We're praying you either change or get busted. Those are the only
two options to stop what you're doing. We're willing to help with either."

I frankly wish they'd choose the former over the latter.

I wish for them a flash of realization.

A glimpse of their own kids using what they're selling to others.

A realization that there aren't many 80 year old dealers. An
admission that this is a sorry way to get old and die.

I wish for them a dream.

A dream in which they see a suffering child whose food and care are
neglected while his parents nurture their own addiction.

A dream in which they hear the gut-wrenching sobs of good parents
mourning the loss of their child to the streets.

A dream of their grandmother victimized by a violent mugger that's
little more than an addict in need of cash to buy their product.

A dream of the judge that won't be bamboozled, the law that can't be
mocked. I'm a preacher. I'd rather they get a vision of hell than
actually go there.

I'm clinging to the hope that some thing, some thought, some person
can arrest the insanity on our streets.

I wish they'd see through their rationalizations.

It's not "just business." It's peddling poison, marketing misery, and
employing armed greed to wreak havoc in neighbourhoods like ours.

I've talked with other dealers that rationalized their dealing by
protesting that they "cut the drugs clean" and "took good care of customers."

One even lectured me on how nobody else in society really cared about
his customers. The argument went like this: "Be honest. Nobody cares
about these people. They're outcasts. Hopeless. Who are you to deny
them the simple pleasure of a little relief?! There's a lot of real
bad guys out there, Harry. I'm actually about the nicest guy they can
deal with in the process."

There are guys out there who actually peddle these rationalizations.
I wonder if they really believe their own garbage.

I remember one confrontation with a couple of dealers in which they
tried to accuse me of racism and class warfare. "Why don't you go
after the really rich white guys selling the drugs to us?" I assured
them I was.

Then they accused me, a minister, of hating when I should be loving!
They lectured me about my lack of grace and forgiveness.

I assured them that I didn't hate them, just what they were doing. I
remember saying, "If I had 10 creative and determined guys like you
with your heads around the right things rather than up your butts, we
could turn this city upside down for good."

I haven't met a "bad guy" yet that was totally bad. But I'm not about
to embark on some cheesy "this crook is really a victim" nonsense.

Will anything really change as long as there are proceeds of crime
and a profit for the greedy? There's a limit to what cops and courts
can accomplish.

For me, I often feel caught between hoping for the best, and bracing
for the worst.

Some things won't change. But if some people change, it'll still be good.